The Carolina Panthers defeated one of the top teams in the NFL yesterday as they were able to break multiple big plays on the ground against a stout Minnesota Vikings defense that came in only allowing 78 yards on the ground; the Panthers would put up 216. The Vikings only allowed 17 points per game; the Panthers scored 31. While two plays for 122 yards make any rushing statistics look eye-popping, they all count and the returns of center Ryan Kalil and tight end Greg Olsen can’t be overlooked; the return of Olsen allows Ed Dickson to return to his role as primary blocking tight end.
Olsen was on the field for 92% of snaps; he missed a few to have his foot retaped and took a few off, but should be on track to return to his normal 100% next week against the Packers. The biggest surprise on offense appears to be the absence of Kaelin Clay who was surpassed on the depth chart by Brenton Bersin and was only on the field for three offensive snaps after playing over 60% two weeks ago in New York. Damiere Byrd had a career game, catching all five of his targets, the second-most for any Panthers pass catcher; he may be the new #2 wide receiver. After saying that both Fozzy Whittaker and Cameron Artis-Payne would be active and receive carries, Ron Rivera chose to only play Artis-Payne on special teams, where he has been making an impact all season.
Even with Daryl Worley getting most (89%) of the snaps, don’t count out Kevon Seymour in the cornerback rotation quite yet. Worley had 75% of the snaps against the Jets before getting less than Seymour last week against the Saints; defensive coordinator Steve Wilks continues to talk about how much he likes the skillsets of both players. The Panthers will hear from Kevon Seymour again this season. One of the reasons the Panthers defensive line can be so dominant as they were yesterday is the rotation allows them all to stay fresh. Addison played the most with 70% as he usually does, with Bryan Cox, Jr playing the fewest snaps but still on the field for 32%. Wilks used Colin Jones as a “Shaq Substitute”, even giving the TCU grad the start; Captain Munnerlyn saw a ton of work, his most of the season by a long shot. Jairus Byrd and David Mayo also rotated through the buffalo nickel spot; the wide range of replacements shows just how wide of a swath Thompson’s talents can cover.
The following table is sortable, so fool around and form your own conclusions. Have questions? Let us know in the comments.
| Player | Position | Offensive Snaps | Percentage | Defensive Snaps | Percentage | Special Teams | Percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T Turner | G | 64 | 100% | 5 | 16% | ||
| A Norwell | G | 64 | 100% | 5 | 16% | ||
| D Williams | T | 64 | 100% | 5 | 16% | ||
| M Kalil | T | 64 | 100% | 5 | 16% | ||
| C Newton | QB | 64 | 100% | ||||
| R Kalil | C | 64 | 100% | ||||
| G Olsen | TE | 59 | 92% | ||||
| D Funchess | WR | 45 | 70% | ||||
| C McCaffrey | RB | 43 | 67% | 1 | 3% | ||
| D Byrd | WR | 38 | 59% | 6 | 19% | ||
| E Dickson | TE | 33 | 52% | 17 | 55% | ||
| J Stewart | RB | 26 | 41% | ||||
| R Shepard | WR | 23 | 36% | 5 | 16% | ||
| C Manhertz | TE | 20 | 31% | 11 | 35% | ||
| B Bersin | WR | 17 | 27% | 12 | 39% | ||
| F Whittaker | RB | 8 | 12% | 14 | 45% | ||
| T Moton | T | 5 | 8% | 5 | 16% | ||
| K Clay | WR | 3 | 5% | 5 | 16% | ||
| L Kuechly | LB | 74 | 100% | 6 | 19% | ||
| K Coleman | FS | 74 | 100% | 6 | 19% | ||
| T Davis | LB | 74 | 100% | 5 | 16% | ||
| J Bradberry | CB | 71 | 96% | 8 | 26% | ||
| M Adams | SS | 69 | 93% | 6 | 19% | ||
| D Worley | CB | 66 | 89% | 7 | 23% | ||
| C Munnerlyn | CB | 58 | 78% | ||||
| M Addison | DE | 52 | 70% | 1 | 3% | ||
| K Short | DT | 51 | 69% | 6 | 19% | ||
| S Lotulelei | DT | 45 | 61% | 6 | 19% | ||
| J Peppers | DE | 42 | 57% | 6 | 19% | ||
| W Horton | DE | 30 | 41% | ||||
| V Butler | DT | 26 | 35% | 5 | 16% | ||
| K Love | DT | 25 | 34% | ||||
| B Cox | DE | 24 | 32% | 7 | 23% | ||
| C Jones | FS | 13 | 18% | 12 | 39% | ||
| K Seymour | CB | 9 | 12% | 13 | 42% | ||
| J Byrd | FS | 6 | 8% | 6 | 19% | ||
| D Mayo | LB | 3 | 4% | 22 | 71% | ||
| C Artis-Payne | RB | 20 | 65% | ||||
| A Gachkar | LB | 20 | 65% | ||||
| S Paysinger | LB | 20 | 65% | ||||
| B Jacobs | LB | 20 | 65% | ||||
| J Jansen | LS | 11 | 35% | ||||
| G Gano | K | 11 | 35% | ||||
| M Palardy | P | 11 | 35% | ||||
| G Van Roten | G | 10 | 32% |
